Cicada Wing Thousand Layers

Qin Jue continued selecting martial techniques, his gaze sweeping rapidly over rows of jade slips. For those with ordinary names like Falling Leaf Sword Technique and Mountain Splitting Saber Technique, he didn't even have the interest to pick them up.

In Qin Jue's eyes, these techniques were nothing more than common, low-grade goods. If he cultivated them, aside from wasting time, they would offer no help whatsoever in improving combat power.

This sweep took half a stick of incense's time.

Finally, Qin Jue's gaze settled on a corner of the bookshelf. There, tossed aside, lay a cyan jade slip covered in a thick layer of dust.

"Cicada Wing Layers..."

Qin Jue's heart stirred. Not minding the dirt, he casually picked it up and infused a thread of blood energy into it.

"Woom--!"

The moment his perception touched the jade slip, a sharp aura surged along his arm straight into his mind, jolting Qin Jue's spirit.

"Sword like a cicada's wing, thin and sharp, vibration splits into a thousand, killing without sound."

What a fierce sword technique!

Qin Jue suppressed the tremor in his heart and continued probing deeper. As he read, he couldn't help but marvel inwardly. This sword technique didn't pursue absolute power suppression but pushed technique to its extreme!

Its core lay in an extremely special method of circulating blood energy, causing the sword blade to vibrate at high frequencies of several thousand times per breath. It shattered an ordinary force into hundreds or thousands of barely visible, fine sword blades!

This method of applying force demanded an excruciating level of control from the martial artist. Ordinary practitioners simply couldn't master it. If forced, not only would it fail to harm an enemy, but the uncontrolled vibration of the blade would shatter the user's hand bones, leaving hidden injuries.

But for Qin Jue, it was practically tailor-made!

And this sword technique had three forms.

First form [Flap Wings]: the blade vibrates at high frequency; anything it touches is instantly reduced to powder!

Second form [Thousand Threads]: sword qi like silk, easily tearing through metal and stone!

Third form [Silent]: the sword strikes without shadow, killing without form!

Yet, just as Qin Jue's divine sense delved deep into the jade slip, a blood-red warning suddenly appeared, its words brimming with a pride that looked down on the world:

"I observed the cicada shedding its shell and created the Ultimate Form--[Single Thought World Painting]! When this move is unleashed, within three zhang, all things are cut, with no escape! However, none but those with divine comprehension may learn it, none but those with dragon-like blood energy may use it! Lacking either comprehension or physique, if one forcibly cultivates, they will surely suffer backlash and die! Later generations, beware!"

The signature was only a blurred character: "Su."

Another Ultimate Form! Qin Jue's heart tightened, recalling the predecessor's annotation on the Tide Rising Sword Technique.

For ordinary martial techniques, reaching perfection was already one in ten thousand, let alone the elusive Ultimate Form! Countless predecessors spent their entire lives unable to even touch its threshold, ultimately dying with regret—such was the gap in comprehension!

In comparison, the creator of Cicada Wing Layers could truly comprehend the Ultimate Form, truly a dazzling talent.

As for this warning, to a mediocre mind it was a dead end, but in Qin Jue's eyes, it was a dragon gate! A trial set specifically for geniuses!

"None but those with divine comprehension may learn it? I possess the [Void Clarity Sword Heart], my comprehension far surpassing ordinary people. Let's see just how profound this Ultimate Form is!"

"As for blood energy backlash? Ordinary martial artists with mortal flesh naturally can't withstand it. Once I cultivate the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record, my viscera will be far tougher than normal, and my blood energy's vigor—who among my peers can compare?"

If others can't cultivate it, I will!

Qin Jue hesitated no longer. He pulled out the jade slip for Cicada Wing Layers and, together with the scroll of Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record, turned and strode toward the gray-robed steward at the entrance.

"Clatter."

Qin Jue placed the book and slip on the wooden table.

The old steward, who had been half-dozing, slowly opened his cloudy eyes. When he recognized the names of the manuals, his brow immediately furrowed tightly.

"Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record... Cicada Wing..."

The old steward's voice was low:

"Ordinary people seek stability; geniuses seek the 'extreme.'"

"It's fine for a young man to have ambition, but reaching for the clouds often leads to death. Be careful you don't play yourself to death."

Facing this blunt warning, Qin Jue's expression remained calm. He wasn't intimidated but instead gave a faint smile.

"Elder's teaching, this disciple remembers."

"However..." Qin Jue paused, his gaze falling on the cyan jade slip, "This disciple just read the slip carefully and saw the predecessor's annotation: none but those with divine comprehension may learn it."

"Though this disciple's cultivation is shallow and I possess nothing of value, I have some confidence in these two words: 'comprehension.' Since it's a test of comprehension, this disciple wishes to give it a try."

"If within a month I cannot grasp it, it means this technique is not for me. I will return it then and will never force cultivation."

Hearing this, the old steward gave Qin Jue a deep look, as if trying to see through the source of this youth's confidence.

After a moment, he suddenly laughed, a meaningful expression appearing on his wrinkled face.

"Give it a try? Hah, interesting."

He shook his head, picked up his seal, and stamped it heavily on the registration ledger for both books.

"You young people nowadays, each one's talk is bigger than the last. Fine, since you have the self-awareness to know when to back off, this old man won't waste more words."

He pushed the books back to Qin Jue and resumed his lazy demeanor. "Take them. But I'll say this upfront: if you mess up your cultivation, don't expect the academy to save you. This time next month, remember to return the books."

"Thank you, Elder, for your permission."

Qin Jue took the books with both hands, bowed respectfully, turned, and strode away.

Leaving the Myriad Scrolls Pavilion, Qin Jue headed straight for the Hundred Refinements Workshop on the academy's west side.

That was the academy's dedicated weapon forging area, where furnaces blazed all day and the clang of hammers never ceased.

With one hundred and sixty Battle Merits, and following the academy's preferential treatment for Outer Court Disciples, Qin Jue was eligible to claim one Mortal Tier Mid-grade weapon for free.

Before the dazzling array of weapon racks, Qin Jue ignored those flashy, impractical arms and walked straight to the farthest corner, picking up a jet-black longsword.

[Cold Iron Sword].

Mortal Tier Mid-grade, blade length three feet three inches, width two and a half fingers, weight sixty-two catties.

This sword was no ordinary mass-produced Hundred Refined Steel from a common smithy; it was forged by blending three-tenths Deep Sea Cold Iron into the steel. Though merely a Mundane Artifact, its texture was extremely hard, and a chilling cold permeated the entire blade.

"Woom--!"

Qin Jue flicked his wrist, and the sixty-two-catty longsword felt as light as nothing in his hand, emitting a low, resonant hum.

A fine sword!

Returning to that dilapidated little courtyard, dusk had already fallen.

Qin Jue tightly shut the doors and windows, laid the [Cold Iron Sword] horizontally across his knees, and spread out the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record and Cicada Wing: Thousand Layers flat on the table.

He had the technique, the martial skill, and the weapon.

"Hoo..."

Qin Jue slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, calming his mind. Yet, when his gaze fell upon his money pouch, his brow involuntarily furrowed.

A grim problem stood before him.

Whether it was the medicinal resources needed to cultivate the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record or the meat supplies required to sustain high-intensity training, everything demanded money.

A lot of money.

And now, tallying up all his belongings, aside from the Battle Merits in his jade token, his money pouch held only a little over sixty Gold Coins—not even enough to complete the first revolution of the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record.

"Still short on funds. In martial arts cultivation, wealth, companions, methods, and location are all indispensable. Even with a heaven-defying technique, without resource support, it's nothing but a castle in the air, a flower in a mirror."

Qin Jue gave a bitter laugh. The soaring ambition that had ignited in the Myriad Scrolls Pavilion was instantly doused by this harsh reality.

He rubbed his brow, a trace of helplessness flashing in his eyes.

In truth, within Skywind Martial City, the Qin Family could be considered a mid-tier clan with a fairly solid foundation, but that had nothing to do with him now.

Though the original owner of this body also bore the surname Qin and was a member of the Second Branch, his status was extremely awkward.

Ever since his birth mother died young, his father Qin Zhenhe had ignored him completely, as if he had no such son. And the stepmother Liu Ru, who managed the Inner Court of the Second Branch, naturally funneled all cultivation resources to her own two children—younger brother Qin Yunze and younger sister Qin Yu.

In his memories, someone like Qin Yunze, who had decent talent and was deeply favored as a legitimate son of the Second Branch, received a monthly allowance of fifty Gold Coins.

As for the eldest branch's genius cousin Qin Yunfeng, hailed as the family's hope, his treatment was even more lavish. It was said that his daily medicinal bath consumed rare herbs worth dozens of Gold Coins, and the family spared no expense hiring renowned masters to guide him.

And Qin Jue?

As an unappreciated collateral of the Second Branch, judged as "mediocre in talent," his monthly allowance was a mere ten Gold Coins.

Ten Gold Coins might buy a few bushels of grain in an ordinary household and sustain a month of basic living. But for a martial artist, that amount couldn't even purchase a single portion of Fierce Beast meat.

If the original owner hadn't scrimped and saved, he might have struggled just to eat, let alone afford expensive cultivation resources.

"Resource allocation in a clan is always brutal. The eldest branch eats meat, the Second Branch's legitimate line drinks the soup, and for a collateral like me... getting a few crumbs is already lucky."

Having lived two lives, he understood the laws of this world all too well. In this realm where strength reigned supreme, so-called family bonds were fragile and shattered at the slightest touch of absolute interest. His father's coldness, his stepmother's contempt, his cousin's condescending gaze—at the root of it all, it was because this body was too weak!

"Relying on the family is hopeless."

Qin Jue's expression remained calm, without a trace of resentment. Such useless emotions would only slow the speed of his sword draw.

Though he was merely a collateral of the Qin Family, he was first and foremost a swordsman. In a swordsman's eyes, everything in the world fell into two categories: the sword in his hand, and the resources beneath his blade.

"If the family won't provide, I'll take from outside."

"A living man can't be choked to death by piss, can he?"